THE THE

THE THE began in the late 1970s as a multimedia art collective inspired by The Plastic Ono Band. Matt Johnson gains experience within the post-punk landscape as a studio engineer and gradually develops a unique sound by linking his love for soundtracks to legends like John Lennon, Hank Williams or Robert Johnson. The debut ‘Burning Blue Soul’ (1981) opens the door for New York recordings of ‘Uncertain Smile’ (1982), released on CBS, which at the time also hosted Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Springsteen and Johnny Cash.

The big leap forward came with ‘Soul Mining’ (1983), a sonic masterpiece full of synths, violins and drum machines by a 21-year-old with tons of talent as he shows in ‘This Is The Day’.

With the songs ‘Infected’ (1986), ‘Mind Bomb’ and ‘(1989) and Armageddon Days Are Here (Again)’ (1989), he talks about desire, inner reflection and religion in which he warns against religious wars. An emotional high came with ‘Dusk’ (1993) after the sudden death of his brother. Things went quiet for a long time after that until The The fan David Bowie invited him to the Meltdown Festival (2002). Johnson then moved to Sweden and focused mainly on soundtracks. He highlighted the impact of the death of his mother and second brother Andrew and his troubled relationship with fame and creativity in the 2017 documentary ‘The Inertia Variations’. A year later, he surprised everyone with ‘The Comeback Special Tour’ after 16 years ‘off stage’ – including a concert film – and launched new work drop by drop.